Chapter 218 - 213- The ancient
The golden eye beneath the mountain remained open.
Nobody moved.
For several seconds, even the wind seemed to stop.
John stood at the front of the group, staring down at the enormous eye. He could feel the second fragment inside his Dragon Core reacting to it.
The first fragment was reacting too.
That alone was enough to make him cautious.
Whatever was beneath the mountain had a connection to the Great Dragon’s Legacy.
But it wasn’t part of the Legacy.
John could feel the difference.
The Legacy felt familiar.
This presence didn’t.
It felt old.
Far older than anything John had encountered since arriving in this world.
Lythriel slowly stepped beside him.
"John..."
"I know."
"Can you tell what it is?"
John shook his head.
"No."
That answer made her more nervous than anything else could have.
Behind them, Cael was still on one knee.
John glanced at him.
"You know what this is."
Cael looked up.
His face had lost most of its color.
"I know what the records called it."
"What?"
Cael swallowed.
"The First Guardian."
John frowned.
"Guardian of the Legacy?"
"No."
Cael looked back at the mountain.
"Guardian of the world."
Aerion stared at him.
"That doesn’t sound like something we should be standing near."
"I agree," Cael said.
Varin looked at Cael with disbelief.
"You said the First Guardian was dead."
"It was supposed to be."
John looked between them.
"Start explaining."
Cael stood slowly.
"My family kept records about this place for generations. The Ashen Range wasn’t originally a mining region. The mines came much later."
John listened.
"This mountain was once considered sacred. Long before the kingdoms that exist today, people believed something had been sealed beneath it."
Darius frowned.
"What?"
"We don’t know."
Cael looked at John.
"But every record mentioned the same thing."
"The First Guardian?"
Cael nodded.
"It was created to protect something."
John looked toward the golden eye.
"And you don’t know what?"
"No."
Varin suddenly spoke.
"We do."
Everyone turned toward him.
Cael’s expression hardened.
"You know?"
Varin nodded.
"The First Guardian wasn’t created to protect the Legacy."
He looked at John.
"It was created to protect the world from what the Legacy could become."
Silence followed.
John’s expression didn’t change, but his mind was already working.
That explained the seal.
It explained the guardians.
It explained why the second fragment had refused to synchronize.
But there was still one problem.
"Then why did it call me the bearer?"
Varin didn’t answer immediately.
Instead, he looked toward the mountain.
"Because it recognizes the Legacy inside you."
"That’s not an answer."
"No."
Varin looked back at John.
"It’s a warning."
The mountain shook again.
This time, a section of rock broke away.
Golden light spilled across the slope.
The enormous eye moved.
Slowly.
The mountain wasn’t simply hiding something.
The thing beneath it was waking up.
John’s Dragon Core pulsed.
A faint message appeared before his eyes.
**[Unknown Ancient Presence detected.]**
**[Connection to Great Dragon Legacy: Confirmed.]**
John stared at the message.
Then another line appeared.
**[Threat classification unavailable.]**
That caught his attention.
He hadn’t seen that before.
The System could usually estimate an enemy’s tier.
Even the near-Tier 11 monster had been classified.
But this time...
Nothing.
John closed the status window.
"Everyone move away from the mountain."
Lythriel looked at him.
"What about you?"
"I’m going to stay here."
"John."
"I’m not fighting it."
He pointed toward the others.
"I’m making sure it doesn’t come after you."
Lythriel clearly wanted to argue.
Instead, she nodded.
"Fine."
Darius began moving with Sylvara and Aerion.
Cael hesitated.
John looked at him.
"You too."
Cael shook his head.
"I need to stay."
"Why?"
"Because if the First Guardian has awakened, I may be the only one who knows what to do."
John stared at him.
"Then you’d better start talking."
Cael looked at the mountain.
"The Guardian won’t attack unless it believes the world is in danger."
John raised an eyebrow.
"That sounds simple."
"It isn’t."
Cael looked at the two fragments’ resonance within John.
"It might consider the Legacy itself a threat."
John understood.
"So I need to prove I’m not here to use it."
"Yes."
John looked toward the golden eye.
"How?"
Cael didn’t answer.
The eye suddenly moved.
Its enormous pupil focused completely on John.
A voice rolled across the mountain.
**"Bearer."**
John felt the ground tremble beneath his feet.
He stepped forward.
"I’m listening."
**"You carry what was divided."**
John nodded.
"Two fragments."
**"Two."**
The voice became quieter.
**"Yet you seek the others."**
John didn’t deny it.
"I want to understand the Legacy."
A long silence followed.
Then:
**"Why?"**
John thought about the question.
He could have given an easy answer.
Power.
Protection.
Answers.
But none of them were complete.
"I don’t know yet."
Cael looked at him in surprise.
John continued.
"But I know I don’t want someone else deciding what I become."
The mountain became silent.
Lythriel watched from a distance.
John continued.
"I’ve spent enough time being pushed from one problem to another. If this Legacy is part of my path, I’ll decide what I do with it."
The golden eye remained fixed on him.
Then the voice returned.
**"You do not seek dominion."**
John shook his head.
"No."
**"You do not seek worship."**
"No."
**"You do not seek destruction."**
"No."
The eye slowly closed.
For a moment, John thought the conversation was over.
Then the mountain opened.
Not physically.
Something inside the mountain released.
A wave of pressure swept across the valley.
Trees bent.
Rocks rolled down the slopes.
Darius and the others were forced to brace themselves.
John remained standing.
His black hair whipped around his face.
His eyes narrowed.
The pressure wasn’t attacking him.
It was measuring him.
His Dragon Core reacted instinctively.
Black energy spread across his body.
John stopped it.
He didn’t transform.
He didn’t want to answer a test of restraint with force.
The pressure faded.
The golden eye opened again.
**"You may continue."**
John released the breath he hadn’t realized he was holding.
Cael looked stunned.
"It accepted you."
John shook his head.
"No."
He looked toward the mountain.
"It allowed me to leave."
Cael’s expression changed.
There was a difference.
A very important one.
Before anyone could speak, the two masked constructs behind Varin suddenly stepped forward.
Their red eyes turned gold.
Varin immediately raised his hand.
"Wait."
The constructs ignored him.
They moved toward John.
Lythriel immediately raised her spear.
John held up his hand.
"Don’t."
The first construct stopped directly in front of John.
Its chest opened.
A small golden crystal emerged.
John stared at it.
The crystal floated toward him.
His Dragon Core responded.
The second fragment inside him began to resonate.
The System appeared.
**[Legacy Guardian has acknowledged the bearer.]**
**[A temporary mark has been granted.]**
**[Guardian Mark acquired.]**
John blinked.
"A mark?"
The crystal disappeared into his chest.
A strange warmth spread through him.
Nothing else happened.
No explosion.
No increase in power.
No new skill.
Just a faint sensation that something was now watching him.
John opened his status.
**[Guardian Mark — Active]**
**[Effect: Allows recognition by designated Legacy Guardians.]**
**[Additional effects: Unknown]**
John frowned.
"Unknown."
Aerion walked closer.
"What did you get?"
"Something called Guardian Mark."
Darius looked at the constructs.
"So they won’t attack us now?"
John looked at them.
"I don’t think so."
Varin suddenly laughed.
Everyone turned toward him.
He wasn’t laughing because something was funny.
He looked almost relieved.
"That’s it."
John frowned.
"What?"
Varin looked at him.
"The mark."
"What about it?"
"You don’t understand what you just received."
"Then explain."
Varin’s expression became serious.
"The last bearer never received it."
John’s eyes narrowed.
"Who was the last bearer?"
Varin looked toward the mountain.
Then back at John.
"We don’t know."
"Then how do you know they didn’t receive it?"
Varin hesitated.
"Because the records stop before that."
John stared at him.
"So your family knows less than you pretend."
Varin didn’t respond.
A sudden noise came from the forest.
Everyone turned.
The seven people who had arrived with Varin were no longer standing where they had been.
Only two remained.
The rest were gone.
John’s expression hardened.
"Where did they go?"
Varin looked confused.
"I don’t know."
John’s senses spread outward.
Then he felt it.
Movement beneath the ground.
Not one presence.
Several.
John looked toward the forest.
"They didn’t leave."
Lythriel tightened her grip.
"Then where are they?"
John’s eyes narrowed.
"Under us."
The ground suddenly cracked.
Several dark figures burst from beneath the soil.
Darius drew his weapon.
Aerion moved beside him.
Sylvara raised a barrier.
John stepped forward.
This time, there was no hesitation.
The people who had come looking for the Legacy had finally made their move.
And judging by the way they moved...
They hadn’t come to talk.
John’s eyes turned cold.
"Stay behind me."
The first attacker lunged.
John caught the man’s weapon with one hand.
The impact pushed him back half a step.
John looked at the attacker.
Then at the strange black armor covering his body.
"Interesting."
The attacker pulled another blade.
John smiled slightly.
"Let’s see what you’re hiding."
He released the weapon.
The fight had begun.
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100 ps = 1 extra Chapter
200 ps = 2 Extra Chapter
1 Golden ticket = 3 Extra Chapter